I'll share my experience with OEM in hopes that it will help you make a more informed decision. (I've had both good and bad experiences with the OEM I bought and I think it only cost $100.)
I bought the OEM version of Windows XP from a company on Nextag. The price was great and it said that it came with networking hardware (in order for OEM to be legal, it's supposed to come with hardware) I was led to believe the networking hardware would be a card which I wanted.
When I got Windows XP, there was no card.. or any hardware for that matter. I wrote the company and said that I didn't get the hardware that was supposed to come with it. The customer service (haha) rep basically said "oh, you didn't get the screw." Yeah... I got it... but only figuratively.
I had a problem with accidentally installing it so that when I boot up, I have to choose between Win XP and Win XP. I called Microsoft in order to find out how to delete one of the Win XP selections at start up, I was told that because it was OEM, I would need to contact the company that sold it to me. I told them that I didn't expect much help from that company. I was then told that I could pay $35 for phone help from Microsoft. I declined.
At the same time, because I like to play around with my computer, I had reformatted Wix XP on my harddrive too many times. Even with the full retail version, I believe you can only install Win XP 3-4 times. The professional version might be different. I called the number to re-validate and did not have too much of a problem in getting a new I.D. number. The biggest problem was having to read off 32 numbers and have them give me 32 more numbers to input. I felt that I was treated like a full-paying customer when I called to re-validate.
When purchasing the OEM, I checked the rating of the seller at both Nextag and Pricegrabber. Their ratings were outstanding. Of course, I wouldn't give them a good rating because of the way the rep responded to me and because I know that I probably can't turn to them for additional help. However, for getting the product at a good price and in a timely manner, I'd give a good rating.
So.... the ratings might be a clue as to the reputation of the company but that doesn't mean it tells the whole story. Even so, I'd always go with one who has the best ratings rather than the best price.
The bottom line for me is that the program is just as functional as the ones we use at work that are retail versions. I've always gotten by without tech support from Dos to Windows ME. If I need help, I know I can always turn to this group and probably get better and faster info.
(So... does anyone know how to delete one of those annoying Wix XP selections at bootup? <g>)
hth,
Rosie Richter
>I just put together a computer. I'm now intending to buy a Widows XP Pro Operating System, full version in a retail box, not an OEM. Checking Pricegrabbers and Nextag for price comparison, I was amazed at the differences in price. For the same OS, the prices range from $199.00 to $299.00. I would like to get one in the $200.00 range.
> However, I don't understand this great price difference.
> There are sellers on the low end and high end that have good ratings. I'm assuming that these ratings are legitimate.
>The reason for this e-mail is that maybe someone could clue me in if there is something that I do not know about.
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